What a France visa actually costs from the UK
A France Schengen visa from the UK costs around £138 per adult if you do everything yourself. Three lines make up that total: the fixed €90 consulate fee, TLScontact's service fee, and travel insurance. Here is the full breakdown.
| Cost line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Consulate fee (adult, 12+) | €90 (about £81) |
| Consulate fee (child 6-11) | €45 |
| Consulate fee (under 6) | Free |
| TLScontact service fee | Around £35-48 (estimate, see below) |
| Travel insurance (€30,000+ cover) | From about £12 |
| DIY total per adult | Around £138 |
| Our done-for-you service | £188 all-in |
The €90 consulate fee
The consulate fee is set EU-wide: €90 for adults, €45 for children aged 6-11, free under 6. It is identical for every Schengen country, no agency can discount it, and it is non-refundable if the visa is refused. You pay it when your application is lodged at your TLScontact appointment, converted to pounds at the current rate (about £81 at €1 = £0.90).
The TLScontact service fee (why we quote a range)
France's UK applications run through TLScontact in London, Manchester and Edinburgh, and TLScontact charges its own service fee on top of the consulate fee. The exact UK figure is not published on an open page, so we will not invent one: France-Visas states that the external provider's fee is set between €40 and €55, which converts to around £35-48. You see the precise amount when you book and pay. Treat any site quoting an exact TLScontact France fee without a source with caution.
Insurance and the smaller extras
Every Schengen application needs travel insurance with at least €30,000 of medical cover, valid across the Schengen area for your whole trip. Compliant single-trip policies start at about £12 for a short trip, though price rises with age, trip length and medical history. See the travel insurance guide for what the certificate must show.
At the centre you may also be offered optional paid extras: courier return of your passport, prime-time or premium lounge appointments, photos, printing and SMS updates. None of these affect the decision or its speed. They are conveniences, so take them only if they are genuinely convenient.
A family example
Two adults and an 8-year-old: consulate fees of €90 + €90 + €45 (about £203), plus three TLScontact service fees (around £105-144 as an estimate), plus insurance for three. A realistic family total is around £330-380 DIY. Children's applications need extra documents, so build the file carefully.
What refusal really costs
If the application is refused you lose the consulate fee, the service fee and any non-refundable bookings, then pay the fees again to reapply. The most expensive France visa is a refused one, which is why the biggest saving is getting the file right first time. See the main causes in the refusals guide.
If you would rather hand the whole thing over, our done-for-you service covers the fees, the form, the TLScontact booking and a human review for £188 all-in: see exactly what's inside the price, or compare every country's fees on the UK Schengen cost index.
More France guides
Sources
Common questions
- 01
How much does a France visa cost from the UK?
Budget around £138 per adult in total: the €90 consulate fee (about £81), TLScontact's service fee of around £35-48 (the exact UK figure is not published openly), and travel insurance from roughly £12. Children aged 6-11 pay a reduced €45 consulate fee and children under 6 pay no consulate fee at all.
- 02
What is the TLScontact service fee for France in the UK?
TLScontact does not publish an exact UK service fee for France on an open page. France-Visas states the external provider's fee is set between €40 and €55, which works out at around £35-48. Treat any precise figure you see elsewhere as unverified; you will see the exact amount when you pay at booking.
- 03
How much is the France visa fee for a child?
The consulate fee is €45 for children aged 6-11 and free for children under 6. Adults and children 12 and over pay €90. TLScontact's service fee usually still applies per applicant regardless of age, so a family application costs more than the consulate fees alone.
- 04
Is the France visa fee refundable if my application is refused?
No. The €90 consulate fee and the TLScontact service fee are both non-refundable if the visa is refused, and you would pay them again to reapply. That is why a complete, consistent application matters more than any saving on the fees themselves.
- 05
Is France more expensive than other Schengen countries to apply to?
The €90 consulate fee is identical EU-wide, but TLScontact's service fee sits at the higher end of what UK visa centres charge, so France costs more in total than, say, Estonia or Spain. You cannot pick a country on price though: you must apply to your main destination.
Free tools that pair with this guide